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A visit to Bird Island in the Seychelles is by many aspects a very unique experience. First there is the 30-minute flight from main island Mahe in a small twin-otter plane, and the first glimpse of the island from the air. Then there is the bumpy touch down on the grass runway. A few moments later you take your first steps on this remote tropical island. Before long you are amazed by the amount of birds around and take your fist dip at the astonishingly beautiful West Beach.

There’s a popular social media quote people love to share: “Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.” So many people find this little bit of wisdom true — hence its internet popularity. Traveling gives you the opportunity to expand your horizons and meet new people from different places. You can escape the humdrum of your day-to-day life and learn new things about culture, food, and the arts.

But what if someone told you that travel doesn’t just make you richer … that it can also make you healthier and happier?

Every serious traveller has at least once dreamt of the magnificent Lofoten Islands in Northern Norway. Rugged mountains plunging into the ocean, grazing sheep on the world’s greenest hills, white-sand beaches like in the Caribbean, picturesque fishing villages, midnight sun: those renown islands are all about that. Located above the Arctic Circle, one may avoid visiting Lofoten Islands because of polar conditions. Forget about that. Because of the Gulf Stream climate there is incredibly mild, with winter temperatures more than 20C degrees warmer than elsewhere on the planet at same latitudes! It’s far from tropical, but in summer even sea temperature is surprisingly warm (prepare for some dips in the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by dramatic landscapes). The only drawback is rain (and a super high cost of living). It does rain a lot, but what you are going to see there will totally make up for it.

Having spent a lot of time in Cannes since my earliest childhood, I have a special relation with this famous city of the French Riviera. Everybody knows about its glamorous Film Festival, but beyond the glitzy image Cannes is an authentic Provençal town with a lot to see and do.

The Parliament, Inside and Out

Budapest’s most prominent building really is an architectural masterpiece and you realize it even more when standing next to it! Impressive from the outside without any doubts, don’t skip the guided tour to see it from inside as well. The official tour is organized in many languages and short enough to enjoy the beautiful interiors without getting bored (book you tickets here). Highlights include the grandiloquent main staircase, the dome which is home to the guarded Holy Crown of Hungary (no photos allowed in that part of the building), the magnificent Assembly Hall and the famous numbered cigar holders. No smoking allowed nowadays but those have been kept because of their historical value. You will learn that when they were in use, the interest of a hearing could be measured by the amount of Havanas left consuming on them…